Three Months
by xmoonlightxdreamsx
Summary: AU, [CARYL] Carol is three months shy of graduating when she moves to a small town, escaping her old one. Physically, she's alone, but she's not without some secrets...
1. Chapter 1

Carol leafed through the papers that the overly cheerful secretary handed to her. She had no idea how Tammy, which she preferred to be called, was so cheerful this early in the morning when Carol just wanted to go back to bed. Then again, that could have to do with the fact that she hadn't slept at all last night, and now here she was on her first day at her new school.

"Try and get these handed in soon, okay?" Tammy handed her some papers about contact information. '_Great, emergency contacts. I wonder if they'll notice if I don't turn it in…'_

"Now here's your agenda, and your schedule," Tammy said, adding them to the stack of papers and miscellaneous items that Carol was carrying.

"Oh, there's the bell, better get going. Don't want to be late on your first day. It was nice meeting you, Carol." She kept that bubbly smile on her face the whole time, and held a plump hand out to shake Carol's.

Carol nodded, shook her hand, and quickly walked out. She stood outside the doorway and glanced at her schedule to see what her first class was, and groaned seeing that it was Calculus. Who thought it would be a good idea to have math first thing in the morning? It wasn't that she minded math, but she hated Calculus, and she felt like most people would agree that it was not a great way to start the day.

_Room 118_, well that was good at least; she had passed that room on her way to the main office so she already knew where it was. The school was small enough that she felt like she wouldn't have any trouble getting lost, which was good for her, meaning she wouldn't have to talk to anyone. She just wanted to get her degree and be done with school.

She walked into the room and kept her head down, noticing how it instantly went quiet and the stares of at least fifteen students eyeballs were suddenly glued to her. She quickly made her way to a seat in the back, and set her things down, ignoring everyone as much as possible.

Oh, the downfalls of small schools. Everyone has the same friends they had since kindergarten. New students were gossip, new prey for the predatory students who had spent their whole lives in the same small town.

She knew it'd be like this, but she only had to make it through a few months of school and she'd finally have her diploma. A lot of places wouldn't hire her without it, otherwise she would have seriously considered not even going back to school after her father died. It wasn't that she had taken his death hard, it had been no loss to her personally, but she had become completely alone, homeless, and without a source of income.

She looked around and saw that only one seat near hers wasn't empty. It seemed like aside from the boy, who really looked more like a man, next to her, the rest of the students were avoiding them like the plague, watching and judging from a distance. It seemed like the rest of the class got along fine as they were chatting away, causing her to wonder if the student next to her was new too.

She rolled her eyes to herself, overhearing the female students talking with each other about how their teacher, who hadn't arrived yet, was so hot.

The bell rang and an average height man with brown eyes and black hair walked in. Carol glanced down at her schedule to check his name. _Calculus, Peletier, 8:03-8:46. _

He smiled a wide, shit-eating grin at the room as he set his things down. Already, she wanted the day to be over.

"Good morning class, looks like we have a new student today." '_Yeah, no shit, Sherlock,' _Carol thought to herself. She hated when teachers did that, pointing out the obvious when they _knew_ that she was coming. The students already noticed her too, obviously, she stuck out like a sore thumb. She might as well have had a sign stuck to her forehead. That's the way it was with a school as small as this one; it made it harder to blend in. Never mind the fact that they were well passed the middle of the school year, and her appearance alone didn't fit in with the sea of name brand clothing.

"Why don't you come up to the front of the class and introduce yourself?" His eyes landed on Carol, never losing that shit-eating grin.

'_Why?'_ She wondered. _'Why do teachers think this is a great idea? Sure, let's take the new kid and put her at the front of the room so she can feel even more awkward.'_

She made her way to the front of the room, with Mr. Peletier's eyes on her the whole time, making her feel even more uncomfortable. A bad feeling developed in her stomach, and she just _knew_ that she was going to hate this class even more than she had anticipated.

Standing at the front of the room, she announced her name and turned to go back to her seat when Mr. Peletier stopped her. "Not so fast, Ms. McBride. Why don't you tell us more about yourself? Interests, hobbies?" He waved his hand as a gesture for her to tell the class more.

"I'd rather not. I'm a pretty boring person," Carol shrugged. Mr. Peletier looked surprised, his smile falling for a split second. Taking advantage of that, Carol turned and walked the excruciatingly slow path back to her seat, and successfully avoided another student's foot that had suddenly jutted out into the aisle.

"_Three months, three months," _she chanted in her head throughout the painfully boring class. When the bell finally rang, Carol looked to see her next class and was almost out the door when she was stopped by her teacher.

"I just want to let you know since you're new, that my door is always open." His eyes roamed her body, making her feel uneasy. She didn't mind nice teachers, but there was something about this one that made her feel like she needed to take a long, hot shower with plenty of soap.

"Dixon!" He snapped suddenly, looking towards the back of the room. The boy that was sitting next to her stirred, having fallen asleep.

"Naptime's over, time to get to your next class," Mr. Peletier said as he rolled his eyes. His blue eyes blinked open as he yawned and stood up. Looking at his tattered jeans, sleeveless shirt and messy hair, she didn't feel like she stuck out so much, next to him. Not that it was a bad thing, especially with those arms of his…

Carol stood there, as the boy walked toward the front of the room. "What the hell ya starin' at?" He glared at her before walking out.

"You'll want to stay away from that one," Mr. Peletier broke her out of her thoughts. "Nothin' but trouble."

* * *

AN: I didn't really want to do a high school fic, because I feel like it's been done so much, BUT I get bored at work, ideas pop into my head, Daryl and Carol pop up into my head…and then it's just a mess and I HAVE to write it, and then the cycle continues… *facepalm*

The title is a stand-in for now…wasn't sure what to name it… suggestions are always welcome. (Suggestions of any kind, and this applies to all of my stories.)

Let me know if I should continue. Whenever I post something new, I'm not going to lie, I stalk me e-mail like a crazy woman.

Next chapters of Stay Safe and Nine Lives should be coming up soon…and by soon I mean… could be tomorrow, or within a week, at least.

Thanks for reading, hope y'all have a great day!


	2. Chapter 2

The alarm on Carol's cell-phone went off at 9:30 later that night. She groaned and stretched as much as she could in the cramped van, before taking down the bed sheets she had covering the windows and running into Walmart so she could freshen up and change for work at Dale's Diner.

She had been working at the 24 hour diner for only a week as a waitress, and already she was exhausted. On the plus side, it wasn't all that busy for the night shifts. On the down side, it wasn't all that busy for the night shifts. It was a double-edged sword, really. Less people meant less people interaction, but it also meant she had less of a chance of getting a tip.

Even though it was the only place that would hire her, it wasn't that bad. So far, she really liked the people she worked with, and Dale himself usually worked in the kitchen the nights that she was scheduled. He was a kind, older man, but still mourning the death of his wife, who had passed away about two years ago.

When she got there, it was quiet, thankfully, and one of the other waitresses, Jacqui, greeted her warmly.

"Oh honey, you look exhausted," Jacqui said sympathetically, with a disapproving frown on her face.

"I'm fine," Carol forced a smile. If she had a catchphrase, that would be it. '_I'm fine.' _ She had to be, she didn't have any other choice. That's how she got through life; by being fine.

Jacqui eyed her skeptically, but didn't say anything. That was one of the great things with Jacqui; she was incredibly kind, but not a busy-body. If you didn't want to talk, she didn't press you, but would be there to listen when you were.

So far, she was the only one that knew Carol was still in school. She never mentioned it to Dale, worried that he would cut her hours or move her to shorter shifts after school if he found out. She couldn't afford to have that happen. She was struggling as it was, but now that she had a job, she hoped that life would get a little easier for her.

Around three a.m., she took her meal break, not knowing what meal to call it at the hour. She'd say breakfast, but it didn't feel like breakfast, since she had been awake for so long. Her internal clock was getting all screwed up with this job.

She sat at one of the booths facing the door, eating a grilled cheese. That was another perk to the job; Dale let them order a meal on the house during their long breaks. One less meal Carol had to worry about, and though she didn't care for handouts, she planned to utilize that perk.

She was dipping her last piece of grilled cheese in her accompanying bowl of tomato soup when the door opened, and in walked Daryl Dixon; with a crossbow strapped to his back, oddly enough. She had learned his first name in English, another class they had together. His glaring, mad at the world eyes met hers and she looked down quickly, remembering the first, and only thing he had said to her.

Jacqui greeted him by name, making it seem like Daryl was a regular customer for her. She found that weird, since Jacqui worked weeknights, and that would mean Daryl had school the next morning.

"Merle causin' trouble again?" Jacqui asked him.

"You could say that," Daryl replied tersely, obviously not wanting to talk about Merle, whoever that was, anymore.

Carol felt bad for eavesdropping, but it wasn't really eavesdropping if the three of you were the only ones in the front of the diner, and they were speaking loudly enough for her to hear, was it?

"The usual?" Jacqui asked, not even bothering to take her pen and pad out.

"Yeah," he replied gruffly.

Jacqui disappeared into the kitchen to put his order in, and Carol dared to glance up at him to find him giving her a hard look; not quite a glare, but close to it. He looked intimidating, but attractive at the same time. She looked back down, a blush rising to color her cheeks. This guy was a jerk, and she found him attractive?

She shook her head and opened her math book to work on the homework that Mr. Peletier had assigned. She had only three problems left before Jacqui came back a few minutes later with whatever 'the usual' was in a Styrofoam take home box. As soon as he left, Jacqui sat opposite of Carol in her booth, sighing.

"That boy's got it hard," she said. Carol gave her a puzzled look in response, not sure if Jacqui was going to say more, or if it was appropriate for her to ask her to explain.

"He's always taking care of his older brother because Merle doesn't have enough sense to take care of himself," she said shaking her head. "Plus they got a reputation 'cause of their dad. Most folks won't give them a chance," Jacqui said eyeing her, as though she knew that Carol had already pegged him as a jerk.

Carol cleared her throat, feeling uncomfortable. "He's in a couple of my classes at school."

"Really?" She had a disapproving look on her face. "I didn't realize he was still in school. That boy had to grow up too fast. Sounds like you both have something in common," Jacqui said before looking at the time and getting up.

"I'm gonna clean down the tables. Mind getting the counters for me when you're done?" Jacqui asked her.

"Of course," Carol smiled, getting up to do it right then. She was done with her grilled cheese, and knew she'd have time to work on her homework later that morning.

The rest of work went by surprisingly fast for her, between sweeping the floors, wiping down the counters and chairs, and making small talk with Jacqui. At 6:30, she was free to go as two other waitresses Carol wasn't yet familiar with came in.

She got in her van and drove to the school, thankful that there weren't many cars in the parking lot yet. She finished the last three problems for her math homework before the doors opened at 7, and she headed into the gym to shower quickly. When she was done, she went back to her van and finished her math homework. By then, the parking lot had become fuller, and students and teachers were starting to file into the school.

Fighting back a yawn, Carol got out of her van and headed to her first class. Sitting in the same seat she had yesterday, she set her things down and took her homework out. The rest of the class was chatting away, except for her and Daryl.

For a fraction of a second, remembering what Jacqui had said earlier that morning, she considered saying hi to him, but shook the thought away. She wasn't in school to make friends, which was fine, based on what she had seen of her classmates so far, and Daryl still didn't seem approachable. She was afraid that trying to talk to him would be like poking a sleeping bear. He had snapped at her yesterday just for _looking_ at him.

The rest of the day was mostly a repeat of the previous day, until the final bell rang.

Carol was headed towards her van, more than ready to leave when the sound of a group of boys shouting stopped her. She turned and saw Daryl walking towards a beat up old truck, with a few boys trailing behind him, shouting things like "redneck" and "trailer trash" at him.

Again, Carol found herself in an internal debate. This one didn't take much thought, and as though her feet were moving involuntarily, she found herself walking over to them.

"Hey, leave him alone!" She shouted at them. They stopped to look at her, the group of boys in surprise, and Daryl…with the harshest glare she'd seen out of him yet.

"So, the _mute_ does have a voice," one of the boys snickered. Carol glared at him before one of the other boys, Phillip, spoke up. "Leave her alone, Martinez. We don't pick on the ladies, especially the pretty ones," he smiled at her. Carol rolled her eyes in disgust.

The boys ended up walking away and Daryl spun around to face her, with fire in his eyes.

"What the hell were ya doin'? I ain't no damn pussy, and sure as hell don't need some damn woman comin' to my rescue!"

And that was how Carol had managed to piss off Daryl Dixon for the second time.

* * *

AN: Five reviews already! That made me so happy to see. Since all but one of you are guests, I can't thank you personally with a PM, but I can certainly thank you here! I really mean it; I can't explain how much knowing people are actually reading my stories means to me, especially when I'm so passionate about The Walking Dead and Caryl. I have such a strong connection with the characters and I love being able to have these other worlds with them. Fanfiction is probably one of the greatest things ever, haha.

Anyway, thank you again, SO much. Hopefully you all like this chapter and will continue to keep reading! I have quite a few ideas for this one already.


	3. Chapter 3

It was a week later, and Carol was getting into a routine. Same shit, different day. That was okay with her, at least it meant she knew what to expect, even if she was exhausted, it was worth it. School was almost done with, and work was going as well as work can go. She'd be getting her first paycheck soon, and was rather excited.

Whereas the other kids in her school might spend that paycheck on a new pair of Nikes, or the latest iPod or cell-phone, she had to spend a good chunk of it on groceries. Then again, she wasn't too sure that you could count the food she intended to buy as groceries. It was all instant food, nothing that needed to be prepared or heated up, or required any additional ingredients.

Then, because apparently someone had it out for her and liked to torture her for some sick, distorted sense of amusement, her English teacher paired her with Daryl for a project. A project they wouldn't even be _graded_ on. It didn't make any sense to her. She would have rather worked with Philip Blake, and that was saying a lot. Philip was an asshole, but at least he wasn't an asshole to her.

She hadn't talked to Daryl, or for him, for that matter, since she had stood up to Philip and the rest of his group. And now she had to work on a project that didn't even matter towards their grades with him.

Daryl hadn't approached her about it yet, and she hadn't gained enough courage to talk to him about it. It wasn't so much that she was afraid of him, well, maybe slightly, but it had to do more with the fact that she didn't want to piss him off again, even if she wasn't trying to.

She was walking back towards her van after taking her morning shower in the school's gym, and noticed Daryl's truck was parked next to hers. Out of all the other empty parking spaces, he had to park next to her van. She sighed and got in, grabbing her hairbrush to get rid of at least some of the tangles in her curly brown hair.

She jumped when someone tapped on her window. Looking to see that it was Daryl, her nerves still didn't settle. She rolled down her window and waited for him to say something. He asked her why she was showering at the school with an eyebrow raised in curiosity. Okay, that was a good start. Weird that he was asking her, but it was the first time he had said something without being pissed off to her.

"Hot water tank's broken at my house," she fibbed. The lie came easily, but she didn't know if he believed it. She didn't like to lie, but sometimes lies were more convenient, and even more believable than the truth. His one eyebrow stayed up, like he didn't believe her, but he didn't press it.

Instead, he looked down, refusing to meet her eyes, and asked her what she wanted to do about the project.

'_What do I want to do about the project? What kind of question is that? If he wanted to work on it, wouldn't he ask when a good time to meet would be? Is he asking me to do the whole project?' _

The questions swam through Carol's mind. Having to do an entire project herself wasn't foreign to her, and being that she was only a few months shy of being done with school, she wouldn't really care if she had to do all of his homework, as long as she'd be able to get her diploma and get the hell out.

"Ya gonna answer me?" He asked, looking up at her.

"Uh yeah. I can just work on it, and let you look it over when I'm done," she stammered nervously, absent-mindedly picking at the cuticles on her hands.

He looked at her like she had two heads….and like she had just successfully pissed him off again. Three for three.

"What the hell do ya mean?" Daryl's temper flared. "Ya think I'm gonna let ya do the whole damn thing by yourself? Fuck!" he spat. His face was scrunched up, blue eyes squinting at her.

"I'm sorry, I thought-" she stuttered, before he cut her off.

"Yeah, I know what ya thought," he said, like she had insulted him. He walked away before she could say anything else.

Carol thought she was a pretty patient person, but she couldn't help but groan in frustration. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. The exhaustion she felt was only adding fuel to the fire. She was trying to be nice, that's all she had been trying to do, and it just kept blowing up in her face with him.

Maybe Mrs. Wilson would let them switch partners… Maybe Daryl would even ask first, based on how he had reacted. She doubted that they would get anything accomplished together, since he seemed to fly off the handle every time they had talked, even though they weren't even full conversations.

Carol looked around and noticed the parking lot had already become full. She looked at the time and walked to math class, and hoped the day would go by quickly. All she wanted to do was crawl up into a ball and go to sleep.

The next thing she knew, the bell for the end of the period had gone off. She sat up mortified, realizing she had just fallen asleep in class.

"Carol, stick around for a minute please?" Mr. Peletier asked her. Wonderful, now she had to talk to her creepy math teacher, who would probably give her detention after school with him or something. She was surprised some of the other girls in class hadn't tried to do that….

"Carol, I'm worried about you," Mr. Peletier said, placing a hand on Carol's shoulder. She desperately wanted to shake it off, but didn't. "Is there anything going on with you? Anything going on at home? You can talk to me," he said, before moving his hand from her shoulder to rest on her cheek.

"Look at you, you look exhausted. A beautiful girl like you should take better care of yourself."

Carol stood there in shock, and simply nodded, and ran out of there as fast as she could, with her stomach twisted in all sorts of unpleasant knots. She felt like she should tell someone about this, but Mr. Peletier was like, Mr. Popularity among the students and faculty. Not only that, but what was she going to say, that she had fallen asleep and he showed concern for her?

'_Less than three months now…'_

It was like the countdown was going to get her through to graduation. Then she'd be done with it all… No more Daryl, no more pissing him off, no more stupid projects, and no more creepy ass teachers.

* * *

Lunch couldn't come fast enough that day. As soon as the bell rang, she practically ran outside to her van, and couldn't help but notice Daryl sitting in his truck. Before she went to eat her can of Chef Boyardee, which she was getting sick of, she made the bold decision to walk over to Daryl's truck and tap on his window. She was almost hoping to scare him, as payback for that morning, but he didn't even flinch before rolling down the window.

"What do ya want? Don't wanna be my partner anymore? 'S fine by me. I work jus' fine alone" When he said it, he didn't sound mad, but disappointed. Carol felt a sting of sympathy for him, wondering what had made him like this. Then again, if she had grown up with her new classmates, she'd probably be just as bad as him.

"Will you listen to me, and not get pissed off this time?" She said with more confidence than she actually felt. He looked at her and nodded his head for her to continue. She took that as a positive sign, and started to tell him that her assumption that he didn't want to do the project didn't have as much to do with him as it did her past experience.

"I got stuck in a lot of those groups before. I ended up doing all the work and my classmates didn't want to lift a finger. I wasn't the type to say anything, and as long as I got a good grade, I didn't care. Plus you're not exactly friendly," she admitted.

He snorted at that, and the corner of his mouth tugged up so that it looked like a smirk. "Nah, I ain't all that friendly, but I do my work. People assume all sorts a shit 'bout me, like not wantin' to do any work," he stated, looking at her like he expected her to admit that was what she had thought.

"I'm not the assuming type. Sure you can be a real jerk, especially if someone's just trying to be _decent_ to you, but that's all I can really say about you right now," she said, biting her lip.

He made a 'humph' sound in response, and asked her when she wanted to meet up for the project.

"Not today with those huge circles under ya eyes," he said. She muttered, "Gee, thanks," before he continued, asking if tomorrow was a good day.

"Yeah sure. Your house?" She questioned.

"Nah, yours?" He replied, to which Carol let out an abrupt "no," causing Daryl's eyebrow to quirk up again.

"Library?"

"Yeah, that sounds good," Carol let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully she had tonight and the next night off and would be able to catch up on some sleep, which she desperately needed.

* * *

Later that night, Carol woke up crying. She shifted herself so that she was in reach of the glove box, and opened it to pull out a small stuffed animal, and a wallet sized picture. She laid back down, clutching the stuffed bunny to her chest, and looking at the baby picture of Sophia until she cried herself back to sleep.

* * *

AN: An anonymous reviewer said she wanted to give Carol a hug, and I totally agree. I really feel for these characters…I get so attached to them and start thinking about them throughout the day. I started writing the beginning of this chapter in the break room at work at 4:45 a.m., then throughout work came up with quite a few ideas for this story, which I'm rather excited about. I get really attached to characters and shows… Anyone else like that? Lol

On another note about work, my supervisor watches The Walking Dead, and although he's not obsessed like I am, he still enjoys it. I asked him today if he had seen the bad lip reading on youtube (if you haven't seen it, go, just go, and watch it, and laugh your ass off. Doesn't matter how many times I watch, it's hysterical every time.) He said no, but then tried to do an impression of Andrew Lincoln's voice, British accent and all, and said he sounded like Ozzy Osbourne. I cried out, "No, he does not sound like Ozzy Osbourne! You can actually understand what he's saying and his voice is magical!"

Yeah, no. This really happened. Can't make this shit up. I regret nothing.

I love accents, and Andrew Lincoln is just charming, what can I say?

Yeah, sorry for the long ass note, and my totally awkward weirdness….I have no friends in real life, I'm socially awkward, and have nobody to obsess about Caryl with.

**Thank you SO much for all of the reviews so far… I'm blown away that I've gotten so much positive feedback already. You guys rock. If I could, I'd give you all Daryl and Carol figures or something. Yeah, you're that awesome. **

'Til next time…


	4. Chapter 4

After Carol's nearly restless sleep, her alarm clock went off much too soon. Instead of going to the school to shower, she ran into Walmart to freshen up. She grabbed a can of Spaghettios and a bottle of Gatorade for lunch before leaving for school.

The rest of the day was uneventful until after school when she was supposed to meet Daryl in the library. Mr. Peletier was there, flirting with the librarian. Carol chose a desk in the opposite corner of the room, as far from where he was standing as she could get, and buried her head in a book. She had successfully avoided him that morning, darting out of class before he had a chance to stop her. There was probably a fat chance of it, but she was hoping she'd be able to do that every day right up until graduation.

Not daring to lift her head to see if he was still there, or if Daryl was there yet, she actually started to read the book she had randomly picked up. She was a few paragraphs in when a shadow appeared over the pages.

"Carol, what are you doing here?" Mr. Peletier grinned at her, looking like the freakin' Cheshire Cat. The way he asked her was like they had just ran into her at the store or some place they wouldn't have expected to see each other.

"_Reading, you know, since this is a library and all,"_ was what she wanted to sarcastically say. Instead, she told him that she was meeting Daryl there.

"How nice of you to offer to tutor him," he replied. "But Daryl is a hopeless cause, maybe your efforts would be better spent elsewhere?" He raised his eyebrows, like Carol was supposed to know what he was talking about. And tutoring Daryl? Daryl didn't need tutoring, she had seen some of his homework grades. He might sleep in class on occasion, but he certainly didn't need any help.

"No, we're working on a project for Mrs. Wilson's class," Carol said, looking around to see if Daryl was there yet, internally yelling at herself for her need to be punctual. _"Where was he?" _

"Ah well then, I'll leave you to it. If you need any help, I'll be over there," he pointed to the tables with computers stationed at them.

"Uh, thanks," Carol replied, noticing Daryl start to walk in as Mr. Peletier started to walk away.

"Ugh, thank God you're here," she said after he sat down. His eyes widened and his eyebrows lifted.

"Ya miss me that much? Thought I wasn't friendly enough for ya," he said in an almost teasing way. Ironically, it was probably the friendliest he'd ever sounded.

"No," she stammered, before realizing that probably sounded rude, "I mean –ugh, it's just that… I think the library is off-limits now," she said quietly. "Can we go somewhere else?" She added, feeling uncomfortable. It felt like Mr. Peletier was watching her, but she didn't want to look to find out for sure.

"Ya allergic to books or somethin'?" He questioned her, still in that teasing voice.

"No, but if Mr. Peletier is going to be here, I'd rather not be," she admitted quietly, biting her lip.

The corners of Daryl's mouth went down slightly, and he looked at her curiously, all signs of his teasing manner gone.

"Why not?" He asked in a much more serious tone. It even sounded like he cared, which surprised Carol.

"He just gives me the creeps," she muttered after some consideration, gathering her school things and standing up.

Daryl let out a snort and stood up. As soon as they stepped out of the library, he turned and asked, "Ya don't find him all dreamy an' shit?"

"No, do you?" She asked him, trying to inject some humor back into their conversation, and hoping he wouldn't take offense. He was rather handsome when he wasn't scowling, she had to admit. Hell, he was still good looking even when he was scowling.

"Oh yeah," Daryl snorted again, rolling his eyes. "Ya really don't find him attractive none? If so, ya probably the only girl in this whole damn school that thinks he ain't. Gotta listen to that damn shit every day."

"God no, if I didn't need another math class to graduate I would have dropped his class the first day."

"Well that makes two of us," Daryl answered simply, holding the door open for her as they walked out to the parking lot.

"Where ya wanna go then?"

"I don't know," she said walking toward her van. "We could just sit in our cars for the meantime," she shrugged.

"Prob'ly got more room in my truck, if ya want." Carol nodded her head and went to the passenger side. She was about to get in when she realized there was a crossbow on the seat.

"Sorry," he reddened, placing it in the backseat before she climbed in.

Before she could stop herself, she asked him why he had a crossbow. She had never seen one before, but it looked beautiful and had piqued her curiosity.

"That a question on the homework?"

"No, I was just wondering," she answered.

"Goin' huntin' later," was his short response, as he started to pull out his packet of homework.

"Really?" She thought maybe he was part of a sport at the school or something, like archery. For some reason, hunting hadn't crossed her mind.

"Just for fun?" She asked.

"Food," he responded, and Carol decided by his tone of voice that she would stop pressing the subject.

"We gonna work on the homework, or ya still wanna play twenty questions? Ain't got all damn day," he huffed, shaking a stray piece of hair into his face.

"Fine," she rolled her eyes and pulled her own packet out and started to read the cover page, which basically was just a repeat of what Mrs. Wilson had gone over in class. She had gone off on tangent about how their generation didn't interact any more. It was all about cell-phones and texting and Facebook. Nobody had face to face conversations or got to know each other anymore. She claimed that as far as dating and relationships, people were singled out based on how good they looked, rather than their thoughts, interests and ideas.

"You live in such a small area, and you all know each other, but how much do you _really_ know about each other?" Had been her foreshadowing of the project.

They both opened the packet to the first page and saw a list of questions. "Seriously?" Daryl asked, skimming through them. "What's your partner's favorite color? What the hell does this shit gotta do with anything?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "But it looks easy enough to me, can't really complain," she smiled shyly.

They went through the first few pages, one by one giving each other their answers. They knew more about each other than anyone else knew about them, just from the first page; even if it was all superficial stuff, like favorite colors and favorite foods.

Carol was surprised to find that working with Daryl wasn't as bad as she had anticipated.

Everything was going well until Carol saw that the next section was about family.

"I should get going," she said, glancing at the time and starting to straighten her school things.

"Alrigh', where ya wanna meet next time?" Daryl asked her.

"Um, I don't know, we can figure it out tomorrow," she answered, scrambling out of his truck. "See you tomorrow," she waved. She didn't wait for him to respond before turning away from him and getting into her van.

Not having anywhere to go but needing a distraction, she drove around aimlessly for a while before she ended up at her home as of late, the Walmart parking lot and started to work on her other homework.

Once it was dark, she hung the sheets up, made sure the doors were locked, and pulled the stuffed bunny and picture out of her glove box, before laying down in the back and falling asleep.

* * *

AN: HOLY SHIT. Sorry, but wow, Carylers are the freaking best. You guys don't know how happy it makes me to hear from you. It just totally makes my day, and I can't thank you enough.


	5. Chapter 5

Carol was relieved to be back at work the next night, even though she was constantly exhausted due to the changing sleep schedule she had. Oddly enough, it was easier for her to fall asleep when she was taking a nap after school during the light and noises of the day than it was at night.

The silence and darkness of the night brought out everything she tried to suppress. Thoughts, memories, fears, nightmares… Everything was so much more bearable during the day, even with the constant sounds and commotions that came from the parking lot in the middle of the day.

Her job at the diner was almost always a welcome distraction, regardless of what she was doing when she was there.

It wasn't until around 2 in the morning that she was actually wishing for the solitude and isolation of her van.

It was a Friday night, technically Saturday morning, and a group of drunks had come in and sat on her side of the diner. Last time she had been lucky enough to avoid them when they sat on Jacqui's side. She had felt bad for Jacqui, but not bad enough to want to trade places with her.

They'd been rowdy and making a lot of noise in the usually quiet diner. She had been hit on numerous times, and made to feel uncomfortable.

As she was finally bringing out their check, the bells on the door jingled and in walked Daryl Dixon, crossbow strapped to his back, and wearing his signature jeans, sleeveless shirt, and boots. He looked angry, maybe even just frustrated, but when his eyes locked with Carol's, his face softened. Instead of ordering something to go, he sat at one of her assigned tables. She gave him a meek smile before walking to the table with the drunks and handing them their check. One of them had fallen asleep on the table, while the rest were laughing loudly over something stupid one of them had said.

"Alright, here you guys go," she said with a forced smile. "Can I get you anything else?"

"_Please say no, please say no_..." She couldn't help but think, wanting them to just pay and leave. Although they hadn't been too bad, Carol had no good experiences with drunk men. Her father was drunk more often than he wasn't. He was unpredictable when he had been drinking, and she had always tried to avoid him as much as possible. Being around this group's table just made her feel uncomfortable; bringing up memories that were better kept buried deep within.

"Yeah, your number," one of them bellowed, breaking her from her thoughts. Caught unaware, she didn't think of an answer quick enough before another one piped up. "Yeah doll, what are ya doin' later? Want some company?" He winked at her with a lustful gaze that made her stomach roll in the same way that it does when one is about to be sick.

"Leave 'er alone," Daryl's raspy voice came from behind her. She jumped in surprise before recovering quickly. She still wasn't completely sure about him, but the only fault she knew of was his short temper. Other than that, he seemed like a genuinely good person; certainly not deserving the bad reputation he had.

"Dixon?" the one that had asked for Carol's number slurred.

"Leave 'er alone, Buck," Daryl replied threateningly.

"Ah shit, look at that fellas, its Merle Dixon's little brother all growed up!" Buck laughed as though it was the funniest thing in the world, while Carol stood there uncomfortably still.

"Sorry baby Dixon, didn't know she was ya girl. We'll back off," Buck answered, still laughing as he pulled a fifty dollar bill out of his wallet and handed it to Carol. "Keep the change, hon'."

Carol and Daryl reddened before leaving the table, not bothering to correct his assumption that they were a couple. Daryl went back to sit where he had previously been sitting and Carol went to put the money in the register, while Buck's group walked out. After they left, Carol went to Daryl's table to see if he was ready to order after thanking him.

"Full house an' orange juice, and another full house to go," he requested, before handing the unopened menu over, never making eye contact. Carol left to put the order in, and made small talk with Dale while he was preparing the food. When she went back to Daryl's table with the food, he muttered a thanks before she went to clean some of the other tables before returning when he was finished.

She handed him a check that had a balance of zero, wanting to thank him for coming to her aide. And she wanted to do something nice, having a gut instinct sort of feeling that people didn't do nice things for Daryl very often. She didn't feel sorry for him, not exactly, but she felt like she needed to show him that decent people still existed, and that she was grateful for what he had done for her.

Of course, because it was Daryl, he had taken it the wrong way.

"Don't need your fuckin' charity," he spat out, leaving a $20 bill, twice the amount of the total, on the table before storming out.

* * *

On Monday morning, she got to the school early to take a quick shower. When she came back out, she noticed Daryl's truck a few spaces away from hers. She had thought about what she was going to say to him for the better part of the weekend.

Nervously, she walked up to his truck. His window was down, and it looked like he was working on their math homework. She cleared her throat, and he looked up at her without saying anything.

She took a deep breath before apologizing. "I'm sorry about the other night. You did something nice for me, and I just wanted to say thank you. Didn't have a damn thing to do with charity or being a hand-out."

Then he laughed.

"Ya really ain't like most girls, huh? Ain't ya been told to stay away from me yet?" He asked, looking at her with a trace of laughter in his eyes.

"No, I'm not, and in case you haven't noticed by now, I don't give a shit about what other people say," she snapped, irritated at the assumption he had made about her.

"You don't like when people judge you, don't judge me. I'm not trying to piss you off all the time, just keep that in mind and we can stay friends, okay?"

"Ain't got no friends," He muttered, looking down at his homework.

"You do, whether you like it or not. At least until our project is over," she teased. He looked back up at her, with the corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly. She smiled back at him.

* * *

They met up after school the next day at Daryl's truck to work on their project. Daryl ended up driving them to the local park at Carol's insistence at not wanting to be cooped up in a car. She couldn't remember the last time she really spent time outside, and she missed it. Not knowing where the park was, Daryl offered to take them since he'd have to go by the school again anyway, he'd be able to drop her off.

They sat across from each other at one of the picnic tables. Carol realized it might have been a bad idea to go to the park because once she was there, sitting outside, she just wanted to lay in the grass and soak up the sun. It was too nice out to work on homework.

Maybe once they were done she'd be able to convince Daryl to stay a little longer.

She sighed and opened her packet up to the "Family" section.

The first page was about the other person's parents. They both sat there and stared at the pages in front of them, waiting for the other one to speak first. Finally, Carol spoke up.

"Don't know anything about my mom; left when I was a kid. My dad died a month ago, that's the kindest thing I can say about him, I guess," she shrugged and looked down.

"You're alone?"

"Trust me, I'm better off now than I ever was before. Been alone for a long time," she sighed, looking him in the eyes to reassure him it was okay.

"My folks weren't the greatest neither," he started to say slowly; hesitantly. "My ma died when I was a kid. Fell asleep with a cigarette in her mouth, burned the whole damn place down. I was out playin' with my friends when we heard the sirens, saw the fire trucks go by… My old man died a few years later, then my brother Merle took me in. Been livin' with him ever since. "

On Carol's page for Daryl, next to "Parents" she wrote none. Daryl raised an eyebrow at her and she shrugged. "It's still the truth, isn't it? Nobody else needs to know any more than that," she gave him a sheepish smile. He nodded gratefully in return, and wrote the same down on his page for her.

The flipped to the next page which was about the children, including yourself and siblings. Carol took down Merle's information, his date of birth and occupation, and then Daryl's.

"You're almost twenty?" She asked, eyes widening in surprise.

"Yeah, ain't 'cause I'm dumb neither-" He started to say defensively.

"I didn't say that. I was just surprised," she pointed out. Reminded of their conversation the previous morning, Daryl blushed before responding. "Told ya my folks weren't the best. Didn't enroll me in school 'til Merle came home and said somethin' to them."

"I'm sorry," she said. She told him her date of birth, and he raised his eyes when he found out that she was nearing nineteen. "I got held back a year," she shrugged.

"You?" He snorted.

"Hey, it was first grade. I was a pretty rambunctious child," she defended herself.

"I jus' took ya for a goody two-shoes is all," he laughed. "Wouldn't a expected ya to get held back. Anyway, no brothers or sisters, right?" He asked, proceeding with their homework assignment.

Carol froze, and her breaths came out more ragged. She felt like it was getting harder for her to breathe, like her throat was starting to close up as the tears built up in her eyes.

"Carol?" Daryl asked worriedly. He stood up and sat next to her. He hesitated before putting her hands on her shoulders. "Hey, is' alrigh'. Didn't mean to upset ya. It's okay. You're okay," he said, trying to calm her down.

Carol closed her eyes before muttering an apology.

"I- had a sister. Sophia. She died in a car accident with my dad's girlfriend about a year ago. She was just a baby… Lauren was drunk…" The tears started to come out and she wiped them away hastily. She shrank away from Daryl's touch and tried to calm herself down.

Daryl muttered that he was sorry and started to bite the side of his thumb, not knowing what to do. "We can skip that part," he added when Carol seemed a bit calmer.

"No- I, I want you to. I don't want to pretend like she never existed."

"Okay," Daryl said quietly. "How 'bout we finish for the day. I've had enough sharin' for today," he said.

"Do we have to leave?" Carol asked, looking at him with her eyes still shining from unshed tears.

"No," he said softly. "We can stay as long as you want."

* * *

AN: You guys are the best. If you like this story, please leave a review. Thanks to everyone that has reviewed so far... I can't tell you how much it means to me. We're getting closer to the season five premiere. Hang in there... Plus based on the trailer, it looks like our Carol is going to break into Terminus and fuck shit up. Now that is something to be excited for.


	6. Chapter 6

It had been two months and he still hadn't made any progress with her. He was frustrated, but at the same time he was enjoying this little game of cat and mouse. Her eventual submission would only be that much sweeter. In his experience, the harder they were to catch, the better they were, and Carol, had been the hardest to catch yet.

She had worked a short shift at that stupid diner she worked at that night, and he had followed her to Walmart. Confused when she didn't get out after a while, he punched his dashboard trying to come up with something. He couldn't waste this opportunity, being so close to her and outside of work.

He heard laughter and turned to look outside where a group of teens were playing hackey sack. He snickered to himself quickly formulating a plan and thinking of what to say before he approached them, and looked inside his wallet to make sure he had enough money to persuade them if it proved to be difficult.

Only a few minutes later, he was inside Walmart, hurriedly grabbing a few random items to check out. He started to get impatient with the cashier and all but ran outside, knowing the teens should already be doing what he had asked them to do.

That was confirmed when he walked outside and he felt relieved, realizing his plan was going to work…until he saw her car start to drive off. Infuriated, he threw the grocery bag down and ran after the van until he realized there was no point. He turned to the group of teens with his hands clenched into fists.

"Hey sorry man. That chick scared wicked easy-" was all the teenager got out before a fist collided with his face. The other teenagers backed away from him.

"You tell no one about this," he threatened, shaking with anger, before turning toward his car.

The anger started to dissipate with one simple thought.

Ed Peletier **always **got what he wanted.

* * *

Daryl groaned as his phone went off, pulling him out of a _very _good dream; one that involved a certain dark haired, blue eyed beauty that he had made friends with over the past couple of months. He didn't bother to look at the phone before answering. There was only one person that called him late at night, or ever, for that matter.

"Call a cab Merle, ain't comin' to pick your ass up," he mumbled into the phone. He was about to hang up without waiting for an answer from his brother when an unexpected voice shakily responded.

"Daryl, I-"

"Carol?" He shot up out of bed, instantly awake and alert. He threw on the closest pair of pants he could find, as he listened to Carol explain what had happened and asking him to come over. He gave her his address and directions to his house before hanging up.

He fumbled around, looking for a shirt with worry coursing through his veins. His concern for her was probably the only thing stopping him from going to find these kids and pummel them.

Finding a shirt, he sniffed it to make sure it smelled halfway decent before throwing it on and going outside to wait for Carol, who wasn't coming soon enough.

He was worried about her; something that was foreign to him. He was never close enough to someone to worry about them, but Carol… over the past couple of months, she had wormed her way into his life, and they had become friends. Something else that was foreign to him. He wasn't even sure _how_ to be a friend, but he seemed to be doing alright. He hadn't scared her off yet.

The operative word being yet.

He didn't have much more time to dwell on it when he saw headlights coming towards his house. The worry he felt increased, holding him in a tight grip that twisted with anxiety.

The van pulled into the driveway, and Carol came barreling out and into his arms. He faltered for a moment, unused to the contact before regaining his composure and wrapping his arms awkwardly around her.

"Hey, I gotcha, you're okay," he murmured into her hair. "C'mon, lemme get ya inside," he said softly.

They fumbled in together, and Daryl apologized for the mess after flicking on a light. He led her over to the couch and asked her what happened.

She released her hold on him and looked down into her lap where she was fiddling with her fingers.

"I was uh, at Walmart in the van and these guys just came up and started knocking on the windows, rocking the van and trying to get me to get out…"

"What were you doing there at one in the mornin'?" He asked curiously.

"I-" she stumbled trying to come up with an excuse. That's where I go every night; when I'm not working anyway. I-I thought it would be safe for me to stay there and it was, until tonight…"

"What do ya mean stay there?" He asked, temper beginning to flare.

"After my dad died- they took the house. I don't have any other family," she said looking up at him, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "I didn't have any money or anywhere else to go-"

"You've been livin' in the parkin' lot? Why didn't ya say somethin'!" His concern morphed into a mixture of that and anger. "Woulda let ya stay here. I mean, ain't no picket fence out front, but it's somethin'!"

"I've been trying to save up from work for an apartment," she tried to explain.

"That's why ya been workin' yourself to the bone," he sighed as he ran a hand through his hair and tried to calm down, not wanting to take out his anger on her and frighten her more than she already had been.

"You're stayin' here," he said firmly, without hesitation.

"But-" Just one look from him caused her protests to die in her throat before they ever even came out.

Looking at the bags under her eyes, he softened. "You're goin' to sleep. We'll talk in the mornin'."

She was about to lay down on the couch when Daryl stopped her. "Uh-uh woman. You're takin' the bed. C'mon, I'll show ya."

She quietly got up and followed him, knowing it was no use arguing with the stubborn man. He reddened and apologized again for the mess as she tried to step around piles of clothes that littered the floor.

"Get some sleep, alrigh'?" He said awkwardly to her before turning to leave and shut the door. She stopped him before he could though, asking him to leave it open.

"Daryl?" She was tempted to ask him to stay, but instead ended up thanking him. She got a grunt in response, and couldn't help the small smile that crept onto her face as he walked out.

She snuggled into his bed, the first time she had been in one in months, and wrapped the thin blanket around her like a cocoon. She buried her face into his pillow, letting the woodsy scent comfort her and carry her off to sleep.

What seemed like only moments later, she was startled from her sleep, jolted awake and screaming. It was the worst kind of nightmare; one that consisted of terrible memories that she fought to keep buried and hidden away deep inside.

Daryl rushed in and immediately went to her, racked with concern for the second time that night.

"I'm okay-" she let out sheepishly, ashamed that she had woken him again for something silly like a nightmare.

"Bad dream?" He guessed before she nodded in response, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I'm gonna go out to my car. I'll be right back," she said before slipping out of the bed. She returned after a minute with the stuffed bunny in her arms.

"It was Sophia's," Carol explained quietly. Daryl nodded in understanding. Unsure of what to do, as she crawled back into bed, he got up to leave.

"Stay?" She asked him so quietly he almost missed it. He nodded in response as she scooted over to the wall to make room for him on the bed. She avoided contact, but once he was laying on the bed she tentatively moved to lay her head on his chest. His heart was beating rapidly, but when he didn't try to move away, she snuggled closer to him and allowed herself to relax and drift into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning they were both jolted out of sleep by an amused voice from the doorway.

"Well well well, looks like baby bro is finally gettin' some lovin'!" The voice snickered.

"Shut up, Merle," Daryl pulled Carol closer to his side.

"You better be usin' protection! Don't want no mini Darylinas to look after." Daryl took a pillow and threw it at Merle who dodged it and walked away laughing.

Daryl groaned in irritation and looked down at Carol, whose face was beet red.

"Well, ya kept sayin' ya wanted to meet Merle," Daryl drawled.

* * *

AN: I'm not going to list a ton of excuses, instead I'm just going to say that I'm really, really sorry for how late this is. It's been a bit of a rough year for me, I guess. On another note, we're SO CLOSE to the premiere! Anyone else excited? ;)


	7. Chapter 7

Carol could hear the yelling coming from the kitchen, as much as she tried to ignore it. Daryl had wanted her to stay in his room while he went to talk to Merle about her staying there.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that the older Dixon didn't want her there. His joking mood was long gone now that Daryl had explained she was a friend and not just some piece of ass; and _no, Daryl was __**not**__ going to be sharing her. _Not that there was anything to share. It wasn't like she and Daryl were anything more than friends; even if she had thought about it.

Merle's suggestion had made her skin go all different shades of red for different reasons.

She wanted to go out there and do one of two things: either put Merle in his place, or tell them both that she was fine and she'd go back to her original plan of staying at the parking lot. It had been fine for the past few months. However, there were two things stopping her: Merle, and Daryl.

She didn't want to come between the two of them any further than she already was, and she knew Daryl didn't want her to leave. She wouldn't be able to win either way, so she ended up hiding like a coward in his room, still in bed and with a pillow over her head, inhaling the fading scent and pretending she couldn't hear what was going on.

Not much later, she heard a door slam and sat up in the bed. Daryl walked in moments later, grabbing his crossbow with a pissed off look on his face.

"I'm goin' out. Ya gonna be alright?" He asked, barely raising his eyes to look at her.

As soon as her head started moving to nod yes, he was out the door again.

She sighed and tried not to take offense to the fact that it seemed like he was running away from the situation, but she'd be lying if there wasn't a little bit of a sting. She knew he needed his space; that was the type of person he was. He could be thick-headed, stubborn, short-tempered… but underneath all of that, he had a huge heart. Fighting his brother to have her stay there was just one small example of that.

Carol continued to lay there, not knowing what to do, and not wanting to poke around his room or touch things that weren't hers. It was weird enough being in his bed. Eventually her bladder forced her to get up. If she could have held it any longer, she would have. She was trying to delay the inevitability of running in to Merle, since she was pretty sure he hadn't left.

She crept out as quietly as possible, easily finding the bathroom in the small house. Looking around she could only think about how much it needed to be cleaned up. She was itching to clean it, but she didn't want to overstep her boundaries, and she doubted she'd find any cleaning supplies in the cabinet.

She finished quickly, washing her hands and splashing some water on her face before walking out.

"Boo!"

She jumped back in surprise and let out a strangled yelp; trying to calm her heart after realizing it was just Merle. Then again, the fact that it was 'just Merle' didn't really do much to make her feel better. What she knew of him, she didn't really care for.

"Like a scared li'l mouse," Merle snickered. Carol glared at him then turned to go back into Daryl's room when his hand shot out and grabbed her arm. She winced, remembering all of the times her father had done that to her, and what had come afterwards. She fought back the painful memories that threatened to take over her mind and put her in a bad place. She took a deep breath and focused on Merle, which wasn't much better.

Merle pulled his arm back and a very brief wave of sympathy and confusion passed over his face before returning to a hardened gaze. "Ya really are like a scared mouse, huh? Just wanted to tell ya somethin'. You're a pretty face an' all, I can see why my brother's taken a liking to ya. I wouldn't get too cozy though," he warned.

He turned and walked away after that. Carol swore she was close to being able to actually burn holes into the back of his head. She wanted to tell him to go to Hell, to get over himself, but stopped herself, choosing instead to go over the many profanities she had for him in her head.

* * *

Carol breathed a sigh of relief when she turned into the driveway later that day after work. Daryl was sitting outside, eyes closed and rested against a tree with his crossbow by his side. He looked so peaceful that she didn't want to disturb him, but when she got out the car his eyes popped open and he gave her the slightest, briefest of his rare smiles. It was one that anyone else wouldn't even recognize if they didn't know him.

She walked over to the tree and sat down beside him on the grass.

"Hungry?" She questioned, holding up the bag of food she had brought home from the diner.

He grunted in response and she smiled, taking out his container and handing it to him. She had even brought home dinner for Merle, hoping to get on his good side, but she wasn't in any rush to get it to him.

After a few bites he spoke. "Sorry 'bout leavin' ya. Merle can be a real dick."

Carol nodded in agreement. "He's your brother though."

"Yeah an' if it weren't for that I'd a probably took my chances on my own by now," he said before sucking the tips of his fingers to catch the grease that was dripping down.

Carol blushed, fighting the butterflies forming in her stomach. She didn't want to admit it, because she didn't think she had a snowball's chance in hell with him, but she felt herself falling for him a little more every day. Watching him suck his fingers like that made her stomach do flip flops she had never experienced before, and she knew her face was flaming, and in an attempt to get her mind off of her growing feelings for him, she asked him how his hunting went.

"Got a deer; already took care of it. We'll have a good couple o' meals from it," he said in between the bites of food that he was ravenously eating.

"That's good. Maybe I can come with you next time?" She glanced over at him quickly before looking away to gauge his reaction. Before he could say anything she continued, "I'd like to…plus it's part of our project. Spending the day with our partner and learning something from them."

What she didn't say was how she was also looking forward to watching him shoot that crossbow... It's not like she was blind, she had noticed his arms on more than one occasion thanks to those sleeveless shirts he always wore. Thank God for those.

"Yeah sure," he mumbled, pulling her out of her thoughts. "What are ya gonna teach me though?" He teased, nudging her shoulder with his own.

"I-I don't know," she answered honestly, staring into the distance. What could she teach him? She didn't have any hobbies or special skills like he did. According to her father, she wasn't good at anything. It was almost funny how he still had such a strong grip on her, even months after her death. She hoped that it would be something she'd be able to shake. She didn't like feeling so weak and powerless…

"I don't really have any skills," she admitted, biting her lip and trying to fight back the tears that had decided to settle in her eyes. Today wasn't a very good day for the memories that kept managing to creep up on her. She wished she could just file them away in her mind, and never think about them again.

"Sure ya do. Gotta have somethin'," he answered plainly, finishing off his food.

"I can cook, I guess. And clean. Had to learn how to do that pretty quickly," she laughed bitterly, biting her lip, still fighting the internal battle with her memories.

Daryl was quiet for a moment, before speaking up again. "Think ya can make somethin' out of that venison I got? Ain't really had a lot of nice home-cooked meals."

"Sure," she answered, hesitating before continuing. "My dad liked to go hunting. Never really got much, but once in a while he did. I can make a mean venison chili, if that sounds alright to you," she shrugged.

His eyes lit up at that and she laughed. "How 'bout that then?"

She smiled and nodded. They stayed there in comfortable silence until Carol was starting to fall asleep.

Daryl poked her shoulder. She blinked her eyes at him confusedly.

"Ya snore in your sleep," he teased.

"I do not!" She said, slapping his arm and laughing before standing up. The look in his eyes told her that he was just kidding with her.

"If anything, you're the one that snores. Your snoring could wake the dead," she snorted.

* * *

AN1: You all are the best. I can't believe the love I get for this fic… Welcome to all the newbies and thank you to all of those who've been following along. I send you all virtual hugs! Also, as a side note: **I will not abandon this. **

Thank you all so SO much. And if you've seen the premiere, please continue! I need to fangirl about this! If you haven't, exit out of this screen, and find somehow or some way to watch it!

AN2: GUYS. I can't stop watching the premiere. The whole episode was amazingly epic. Carol/Melissa was incredible and I am SO GLAD what they've done with her character. We're seeing on screen what we've all known for a long time and sorely missed last season. I've watched it probably like 5 times now. If I had the chance to, that number would be even higher. I've watched the Caryl reunion probably at least a hundred times, not even exaggerating. I just…I can't even. That was AMAZING. Better than I could have hoped for. (Though I wouldn't have minded a make-out session *cough cough*)

**They hugged and it was freaking glorious. The way they looked at each other….The moment you realize he sees Carol… And not only was it a running hug. Not only were they swinging and swaying. Not only did he flipping sweep her off her feet. She had her hands on his face, and they were all teary and smiling, and the sounds he was making, and then, HE FUCKING NUZZLED HER! Like, is this real life? I'm STILL just so giddy from it and cannot stop watching or replaying the scene in my head. **

You can tell Daryl didn't want to step away either… and his crying in the background… I just…I seriously can't get over it.

Does that sound as pathetic as I think it sounds?

OH AND ABOUT THAT HUG. Uhm, did you guys see the interview with Melissa and MTV?** They rehearsed that hug a few times…including Daryl TACKLING CAROL TO THE GROUND. I need this in my life! **

Overall though, I'm glad they chose to do it the way they did. I think it's a metaphor.** They're pillars of strength for each other. **They keep each other standing. They hold each other up. They complete each other, etc. etc. etc. You get the point. ;)

Oh, and have you guys seen that we're supposed to have an episode focused mainly on Carol and Daryl, like they did in the second half of season four?

I have a feeling this will be the best season yet, and make up quite a bit for last season and the serious lack of Carol/Caryl.

I could keep going on about Caryl and things I'm excited for this season other than Caryl, but this is lengthy as is! See ya next time…


	8. Chapter 8

The next week went by without event. Carol felt like she could really breathe for the first time in a while. It was nice, not having to worry about getting to school early to shower, or worry that'd she be okay sleeping in her van. It was nice to go to a house again, to sleep in a bed, and to be around Daryl more often.

They bickered at times, but it was never over anything serious. Over the past couple of months they had grown really close; something they both needed from each other. Just being around him made her feel okay, like all of the broken parts of her were slowly being pieced back together.

She avoided Merle like the plague, hoping to get on his good side, if he even had one, by staying out of his way. So far, it was working. She kept bringing food from the diner, and leaving it in the fridge only for it to disappear, which she took as a good sign. Daryl had convinced her to cut back on some of her hours at the diner, which Dale had agreed to, seeing as the diner wasn't that busy during the hours she had been working. She was now working after school, while Daryl usually worked at the local mechanic's. It worked out well enough that Carol was never at the house by herself, or worse, with just Merle.

Except for today. It was Saturday and Daryl had been called into work, agreeing to go after Carol said she'd be fine. He was only supposed to be gone for a few hours and promised they'd go to the store after and pick up everything she needed for the chili she was supposed to teach him how to make.

She ended up getting out of bed and strolling into the kitchen to make some breakfast. She almost crept back into the safety of Daryl's room, when she saw Merle sitting at the kitchen table smoking a cigarette. Deciding she wasn't going to live up to the nickname he had given her, she held her head high and walked in.

She went to the fridge and pulled out a carton of eggs and a package of bacon. Merle eyes her curiously, but said nothing.

"Would you like some?" She offered quietly.

"Sure," he answered, taking a drag of his cigarette, still staring at her. She could feel his eyes on her even as she had her back turned to him. "How do you like your eggs?"

"Cooked," he answered. She rolled her eyes. "Sunny side up, scrambled, over easy?"

"Over easy," he answered again, before going silent. Carol nervously made the food, along with some toast. By the time she had set a plate down in front of him, he still hadn't said another word. She debated on bringing her breakfast back into Daryl's room, before remembering that she was determined not live up to the 'mouse' that Merle thought she was.

"Why're ya still here?" Merle asked, taking a bite of his toast.

"What do you mean?" She asked shakily, wondering where he was getting at.

"Nobody makes friends with Dixons, they just stay away. 'Specially pretty smart girls like you. Probably a spoiled princess, right? Nobody like you wants to be friends with a couple o' rednecks. Ya two ain't gettin' frisky, I can tell that much. I don't wanna be pickin' up the pieces for Daryl when ya leave him," Merle stated.

Carol felt her blood boiling at his assumptions. The thought that she'd ever hurt Daryl…It just wasn't even in the realm of possibility in her mind. Then again, she realized that Merle must have had his reasons for thinking that way, and that made Carol's heart sink into her stomach. The thought that he or Daryl felt that way…

"I'm not going anywhere, Merle," she said, looking him in the eyes. "No, Daryl and I aren't getting 'frisky.' We're friends. He tried to feed me the same bullshit too, but I told him I don't judge people. I could care less what other people say. Why would I want to be friends with him? Because he's the best person I know. He's rough around the edges, but he's better than anyone I've ever met. We didn't get along at first, until we had this project for school. Daryl's a very good friend to me, and I refuse to lose that. As for me being a spoiled princess, that's furthest from the truth.

'Everyone stayed away from me in school. I was an outcast, because my mom had left, and my dad started beating me. It only got worse when my sister and my dad's girlfriend died in a wreck that she caused."

Merle looked like he was about to say something, but she couldn't stop. Talking to him was weirdly cathartic. She stood and lifted her shirt up to show him the scars that marred her stomach, then lifted her shirt sleeves up to show him faded, circular burn marks.

"It was always in places that were easy to hide," she explained softly at his stunned expression.

"I-I didn't know," Merle answered.

"No, you didn't. I understand why you're worried about Daryl, about me hurting him…but I need him in my life Merle. I'm not- I'm not trying to take him away from you. I don't have some ulterior motive. Losing my sister," she breathed, trying to hold back tears, "I'd never try to separate two siblings."

Merle looked down, ashamedly.

"We can start over, if you want. I could use another friend," she said hesitantly. Recovering from his shock at her outburst and all of the information she had unloaded onto him, he looked up at her smirking.

"Guess I underestimated ya, mouse," he winked.

"Want to go watch some TV while we wait for Daryl?" Carol questioned, grabbing her plate to go into the living room. Merle wordlessly followed. Carol sat down in the recliner as Merle searched for the remote that was hidden in the couch cushions.

He smiled smugly when he found it and pressed the power button. The news was on, talking about some new and unknown disease.

"The CDC says at this time there is no reason to panic-" Carol heard before Merle started flipping through the channels.

"Hate watchin' the news," he muttered.

* * *

Hours later, Daryl came home to find them watching some vampire movie on TV. They had made some more small talk, and Carol finally felt more comfortable around Merle. Their talk had been quite a turning point.

Daryl seemed happy to see them getting along, which in turn made Carol happy.

When they came back from the store, Carol promptly set Daryl to work, dicing the venison as she minced the garlic and chopped onions, getting them ready to saute.

"Damn," she muttered after nicking her finger on the blade. Daryl immediately dropped the knife he was using on the venison and went over to her, assessing her finger. "Gotta be more careful, woman," he admonished. He washed his hands then went into the bathroom and returned with a bandage to wrap her finger with.

"Thank you," she blushed. He nodded and turned back to dicing the venison as Carol didn't even try to hide the smile on her face.

Less than an hour later, the three of them were seated at the kitchen table with bowls of venison chili. Carol laughed watching how quickly Daryl and Merle made their way through their bowls, and after Merle complained about burning his tongue.

"I warned you that it needed to cool down still," Carol said to him.

"Yeah but it smelled good and I was hungry."

Carol shook her head and laughed at him. He was like a child, but she was glad to see this part of him come out.

"Ya gonna be cookin' for us all the time now? 'Cause I can't say I'd mind that darlin'," Merle asked before Daryl started to yell at him.

"Jesus Merle, she ain't a damn maid."

"It's okay," Carol answered. "I take it as a compliment and I like to cook," she smiled at Merle.

"See Darylina, jus' over-reactin'." Daryl simply rolled his eyes at him and they finished eating.

* * *

The next morning Carol swatted Daryl's hand away as he tried to wake her.

"Wanted to go huntin' with me, didn't ya?"

Carol opened her eyes, squinting at the sunlight shining through the windows. She yawned and stretched before falling back onto the bed.

"Fine, I'll go without ya. Got my part o' the project done."

Carol sighed before getting up and shooting him a look. "I'm up, I'm up," she muttered, rubbing at her eyes.

"Ya shouldn't have stayed up so late watchin' those horror movies with Merle," he said.

"What? You did too!" She exclaimed as she put her shoes on and gathered her hair into a high pony tail. He snickered at her reaction. "Yeah, but I was able to get my ass outta bed."

"Oh hush," she replied as they walked out the backdoor after Daryl grabbed his crossbow.

Before they made it into the woods, Daryl turned to her. "Ya need to be real quiet, and stay behind me, alrigh'? Otherwise we ain't gonna catch nothin'."

Carol nodded and followed behind him, trying to be as quiet as possible. After a while of walking around, she didn't have to try to be quiet; it had quickly become natural for her. Daryl hadn't said anything, focused completely on his surroundings. Carol didn't mind the comfortable silence. Being in the middle of the woods brought a kind of serenity that she hadn't experienced before.

Daryl suddenly stopped and held a hand up to Carol. She wondered why they stopped until Daryl bent down, looking at the ground.

"See this here? Deer tracks," he said softly. "It's rounded, so it's an older one," he said pointing it out the curve to her.

"These two deep ones, they're the hocks. This one's a heavy son of a bitch."

Carol nodded in understanding, still trying to be as quiet as possible while Daryl stood back up and started walking in the direction of the tracks.

Not much later, and they were heading back home with a large buck, as Daryl had promised. While Daryl stayed outside to skin and clean and do everything else he had to do to it, Carol was inside getting badgered by Merle, who was asking her what she was going to make out of it.

She laughed and named things off, making mental notes of Merle's reactions.

Life was pretty good right now, Carol had to admit. She couldn't recall having ever been happier.

* * *

AN: Every time I get a review, it's _almost_ like getting a bear hug from Daryl. I sound like a broken record, but really, your kind words seriously warm my heart and really encourage me to continue with this, and I look forward to everything you have to say.

I am **still **not over that hug, and have lost count of how many times I've watched the episode, let alone the number of times I've watched the hug or at least looked at pictures of it and read analyses of it… This is seriously like, consuming my life right now.

Oh, and about next chapter... I think shit's gonna go down. :x


	9. Chapter 9

Another week had passed by and Carol was feeling much more at ease in the Dixon household. They had dinner every night; she had even gone grocery shopping and stocked them up on food. She'd been able to tackle the bathroom like she'd been itching to do. Everything felt normal, like everything was happening the way it was meant to. It seemed like things were finally looking up for her. Things were going good, for once in her life.

She should have known it wouldn't last.

It was on a Friday that everything started to fall apart.

All thanks to Ed Peletier.

* * *

Carol had stayed up late into the night, throwing popcorn at and watching movies with Merle and Daryl, even though two of them had school in the morning. Merle was being particularly whiny though, and Carol sympathized with him, realizing that he probably didn't have many friends, if any. Aside from that, she was beginning to genuinely enjoy his company, ever since they had their talk. She was nervous that she had shown such a vulnerable side to him; sharing some of her scars. She hadn't even shown Daryl her scars, but he was more familiar with her other scars, the emotional ones that carried weight.  
The physical scars weren't nearly as bad as those.

The next morning she nearly thought about not going to school; she was so tired, but Daryl was going. According to his logic, if he was going, she was going to, so that they could suffer the school day together. He promised another hunting trip that weekend, which Carol was looking forward to.

She had been awake, thinking she'd be able to make it through the day, but as soon as she sat down at her desk in Mr. Peletier's, her eyelids began to droop. She couldn't help it, and he was just so _boring. _Who wanted to learn about this stuff this early in the morning, let alone ever?

She felt a poke in her side and her eyes shot open.

"Ms. McBride, please see me after class," Mr. Peletier said, before continuing to talk about numbers and crap that she had no interest in.

A bad feeling began to form in the pit of her stomach, and she looked over at Daryl, who wordlessly gave her reassurance. It was amazing to her, how much he communicated just with minor facial expressions, and how much those looks could affect her. He had eased the knots in her stomach, but they continued to form throughout the rest of class.

She almost thought about trying to sneak passed him; hoping he'd forget all about asking her to stay. She knew she was only trying to kid herself though. As creepy as he was, he'd for sure be paying attention. There was no escaping it.

Finally the bell rang, and to Carol it sounded like a death sentence. Desks scraped against the floor and backpacks were slung over shoulders and feet scuffled as everyone else was free to leave and go to their next class. Carol slowly gathered her things and walked up to the front of the room side by side with Daryl, who stood there waiting for her.

An annoyed look passed over Mr. Peletier's face, as he informed Daryl that he wanted to speak with Carol. Alone.

Daryl assured her that he'd wait outside the classroom for her and walked out as Mr. Peletier rolled his eyes and shut the classroom door behind him.

"Now Carol, you're such a bright student. I still don't understand why you're hanging out with the Dixon but obviously he's bad influence, as you've begun to fall asleep in class. I expect so much more out of you, Carol," he said reaching out to brush her hair behind her ear. Carol backed away, her senses on overdrive and her nerves going haywire.

"You're a beautiful girl, Carol and I hoped we could get to know each other," he said, leaning in touching his lips to hers for the briefest of seconds before Carol got over her panic and pushed him away, crying out in the process. Daryl burst in at that moment, tearing Ed away from her.

Everything after that was a blur.

Talking to the police…Daryl taken into custody for assault…Mr. Peletier temporarily suspended…Merle coming to pick her up….At the end of the day it all blended together.

They stayed at the police station with Daryl as long as they could before they were all but kicked out. Merle drove them home wordlessly, and the silence only hurt Carol more than she was already hurting. Once they were inside, Carol found the courage to speak up to him.

"I'm sorry," she said, trying not to cry, but failing.

Merle's face contorted into a perplexed expression. "For what darlin'?"

"For, for this whole damn mess. If it wasn't for me-" She felt liked a blubbering child before she was cut off.

"Aw, come here sugar," he said wrapping her into an embrace. "Don't go blamin' yourself. I'm glad you're okay. Don't blame my brother one bit for what he did. Just sorry I couldn't get a swing in."

Carol cried into his chest until her tears were gone, allowing Merle to comfort her. Oddly enough, he helped quite a bit. Although, once she was done crying, he made Carol swear not to tell Daryl about it.

They both ended up falling asleep in the living room, Carol on the couch and Merle in the recliner. Carol couldn't sleep in Daryl's bedroom by herself, knowing that he wouldn't be joining her. Instead, she had opted for stealing the pillow and blanket off of the bed, and wrapping up in a cocoon like she had the first night she spent there.

Merle stayed out there to keep her company, but she felt like he needed the company just as much as he did.

The next few days were spent much the same, brief visits to see Daryl and then back home again. The CDC reports were becoming more worrisome. There were rumors that people were coming back from the dead; it was like they were living in a dream after falling asleep while watching a horror movie. Merle kept trying to reassure Carol that everything would be fine, and that it'd be under control. "Everyone's gettin' their panties in a twist over nothin'," was what he had said.

Tuesday night, he'd be regretting those words.

"The president has declared a state of emergency; everyone is to evacuate their area and go to the nearest shelter set up-" the news reporter's words were cut off as a body came into view of the camera and attacked and _bit_ her neck.

Carol gasped in shock, unable to believe what she had just seen. The camera loudly dropped to the ground, and then the screen turned to static.

Frightened, she turned to Merle who seemed just as shocked as she was.

"We can't leave him there, Merle," she whispered. "We have to get Daryl."

* * *

AN: Okay, short chapter, but hopefully I'm forgiven for all the chapters I've updated this week lol.

Thank you SO SO SO much for all the favorites, follows, and of course, reviews.

3333


End file.
